Teacup miniature Australian shepherds did Boldheart mini Aussies proud at NAMASCUSA and MASCAS national with Boldheart Western Justice and Boldhearts Kingdoms Treasure. Thank you Kim Gardner of Teacup Ranch.

Miniature Australian Shepherds of superior type, structure,health and temperament are raised here. If you are looking for an awesome family/working addition you have come to the right place. Please have a look around..

If you come to Arizona, come visit the mini aussie dogs @ Boldheart Miniature Australian Shepherds

Thank you for stopping buy to see the australian shepherd puppies/dogs here at Bold Heart Miniature Australian Shepherds. If you are looking for a fantastic miniature australian shepherd please have a look at my mini aussies. I am honored to have won the Breeders Showcase Breeders Cup Award at the 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014 & 2015 miniature australian shepherd nationals. Our puppies come with a full genetic health and temperament guarantee, are hand raised in our home and come very well socialized. My primary goal is to raise mini australian shepherds with the best genetic health possible and with the best temperaments. I have all of my dogs OFA'd and eye's certified before breeding along with other health test. All of our miniature australian attain there championship titles before producing a litter. We strive to breed to the standard and like dogs with good bone and substance. I do not raise toy australian shepherds and there are no teacup australian shepherds but I do occasionally produce some that mature under 14"s. I have blue merle, red merle, black tri and red tri females and males available in my litters. My mini aussie dogs work cattle and go riding with me out in the mountains on a regular basis. They love to play in our 7000 gallon koi pond and love playing frisbee and fetch. If you are interested in living with an incredibly intelligent dog that will be an awesome family companion look no further. I breed for intelligence and good looks along with athleticism. The miniature aussie pups in Arizona here at Bold Heart can and will do it all. We prefer you come pick your miniature australian shepherd up at our home but can meet you at the airport.

The Australian Shepherd: The history of the North American/Miniature Australian Shepherd actually begins with thehistory of the Australian Shepherd. Though most facts are shrouded in time, the most commonly held belief on theorigins of the Aussie begin in the late 1800’s when western ranchers were importing sheep from Australia. During thisperiod the most popular sheep were being imported into Australia from the Basque regions of Spain. When the herdswere shipped, their shepherds were sent with them to manage and care for the flocks on the journey. As the Australian’sreputation for quality sheep grew, the demand for their sheep grew also and American ranchers began importing them.The livestock were shipped to the Americas, again accompanied by the Basque shepherds and their herding dogs.Ranchers of the American west were reportedly very impressed with the working ability of these "little blue dogs" andbegan interbreeding them with their own shepherd dogs. The result was the Australian Shepherd.

In 1976, a single Breed Standard for the Australian Shepherd was adopted and in 1980 the two major breed clubsconsolidated to become the Australian Shepherd Club of America (ASCA). Unrecognized by the American Kennel Club(AKC) at that time, ASCA not only provided a registry for the Aussie, but held conformation, obedience, agility, andworking trials. Although the AKC now recognizes the Australian Shepherd, ASCA continues to provide these activities tothe Australian Shepherd and is currently the largest single breed registry in the United States.

The Miniature Australian Shepherd was developed directly from the Australian Shepherd. Throughout the history of theAussie, small (under 18") dogs can be seen in historical photographs. Many believe that the original Aussie wasselectively bred larger as sheep ranching decreased and cattle ranching increased. Cattle ranchers preferred a largerdog to work the larger stock. Some Aussie owners have continued to prefer the smaller sized Aussie while others preferthe larger.

In 1968 a horse woman in Norco, California, began a breeding program specifically to produce very small AustralianShepherds. Her name was Doris Cordova, and the most well known dog from her kennel is Cordova’s Spike. Spike wasplaced with Bill and Sally Kennedy, also of Norco, California, to continue to develop a line of miniature Aussies under theB/S kennel name. Another horseman, Chas Lasater of Valhalla Kennels soon joined the ranks of mini breeders.

Cordova, Lasater and the Kennedy’s together attempted to form the first parent club for the miniatures. Although theclub never quite got off the ground, their stated purpose for developing the miniatures was to produce an AustralianShepherd under 17" who had the heart, intelligence and drive to work stock, and yet be small enough to travel easily tostock shows and be a "house" dog.

Cordova’s dogs were registered through the National Stock Dog Registry (NSDR) and eventually NSDR came to be thefirst registry to recognize and register the mini as a size variety of the Australian Shepherd.

Originally recognized in (1989 - 1990) they were shown with the RBKC of Southern California (Rare Breed KennelClub) as Miniature Australian Shepherds. The miniature gained in popularity and the owners and breeders missed thecohesive nature of a parent club dedicated to the miniature, so in 1990, the Miniature Australian Shepherd Club of theUSA (MASCUSA) was formed. Kathy Croswhite (Munson), Jeanine Perron, Florence Toombs, Susan Sinclair andRichard VanBurkleo served as the first Board of Directors, and one of MASCUSA’s most notable early achievementsduring that time, was to gain recognition of the miniature by the American Rare Breeds Assc. (ARBA) to provide aNationally recognized conformation show venue.

Now with the recognition of the American Rare Breed Association (ARBA) the Miniature Australian Shepherds showedalong side the Australian Shepherd until 1993, when the AKC officially recognized the Australian Shepherd. TheAmerican Rare Breed Association's policy at that time was not to allow any breed of dog to show with them (except inexhibition) that had the same name as an AKC affiliated breed and suggested that we change our name. Amid mixedreactions MASCUSA opted to change the name of our dogs from Miniature Australian Shepherd to North AmericanShepherd, for the sole purpose of keeping ARBA as one of our main show venues. At the same time, the club amendedits name to North American Miniature Australian Club, USA, while also retaining the name Miniature Australian Club, USAas an a.k.a. The breed flourished over the next five years and grew under this name both in the US and Canada.

In the beginning of 1998, ARBA changed their breed name policy and through much consideration and discussion onthe part of our club members and the Board of Directors of NASCUSA, formerly MASCUSA, Miniature AustralianShepherd was incorporated back into the name of our dogs, thus becoming the North American "Miniature AustralianShepherd".

Today, breeders of the Miniature Australian Shepherd continue to strive to produce Aussies of a smaller stature.Preservation of the herding instinct as well as the intelligence and athleticism of the mini is a priority in breedingprograms, as well as continuing the reputation for health and easy companionship that the mini enjoys.

Miniatures are quickly gaining in popularity among Agility, Flyball and Disc competition enthusiasts as their attributes ofsmall size and amazing athletic ability makes them very competitive and easy to travel with. In the suburbs and cities,families wanting a big dog are attracted to the "big dog" qualities of the miniature Australian Shepherd, in a smallerpackage.

We could not make Nationals in 2012. Please check out the "Brags" page and be sure to click on each picture.

Recently, AKC has accepted the recognition of a new breed and some breeders have chosen to take their dogs into AKC as the Miniature American Shepherd. We have chosen not to seek AKC recognition for our mini aussies, but stay with our past heritage as an Australian Shepherd of the smaller variety. The Miniature Australian Shepherd is still supported by many breeders. There are many show venues as well as the same registries as in the past. The Miniature Australian Shepherd remains the same. Miniature Australian Shepherds can still be registered with MASCA, IMASC, ASDR, NSDR. We choose to register our dogs with MASCA / IMASC. Show venues include MASCA and it's affiliate clubs, ARBA, ICKC, IABCA, ICE, ASDR. Have questions about Miniature Australian Shepherds vs Miniature American Shepherds? Just ask!

The Australian shepherd, commonly known as an Aussie, is a breed of dog that was developed on ranches in the western United States. Despite its name, the breed was not developed in Australia, but rather in the United States where they were seen in the West as early as the 1800s. The breed rose gradually in popularity with the boom of western riding after World War I. They became known to the general public through rodeos, horse shows, and Disney movies made for television.For many years, Aussies have been valued by stock men for their versatility and train ability. While they continue to work as stock dogs and compete in herding trials, the breed has earned recognition in other roles due to their train ability and eagerness to please, and are highly regarded for their skills in obedience. Like all working breeds, the Aussie has considerable energy and drive, and usually needs a job to do. It often excels at dog sports such as dog agility, fly ball, and frisbee. They are also highly successful search and rescue dogs, disaster dogs, detection dogs, guide, service, and therapy dogs.

Australian shepherds/miniature australian shepherds are a working breed and my puppies are sold as working dogs.